As teeth grow in an infant they ultimately must protrude or break through the skin or gum line that defines the upper or lower alveolar ridge of the infant. Some pain is naturally caused by the tooth penetrating the gum line which can cause substantial discomfort to the infant. To help alleviate the pain and, at the same time, to help the growing teeth penetrate the gum line, it has long been a custom to provide teethers for infants. Teethers are typically generally flat objects that extend within the mouth of the infant so that the infant can close their upper and lower gums against the object to apply gentle pressure to the areas wherein teeth are in the process of penetrating the gum line to afford relief to the infant.
Another object frequently employed conforms to an infant's natural sucking instinct and is called a "pacifier". Pacifiers typically have a bulbous portion, a flat shield to prevent the infant from swallowing the device and rearward of the shield a handle portion that can be used for placing the pacifier into the infant's mouth or for removing it from the infant's mouth. An infant tends to keep a pacifier in his/her mouth automatically because of the natural sucking instinct. On the other hand, a teether does not respond to the natural sucking instincts and while a teether affords relieve from pain, infants seldom are able to keep a teether in his/her mouth for any extended length of time. This requires the caregiver to constantly replace a teether that has dropped out of an infant's mouth.
An object of this invention is to provide a teething device including the benefits of a pacifier so that the infant will tend to keep the teether in his/her mouth for a more sustained length of time.
For reference to prior art relating to teethers or pacifiers see the following U.S. Pat. Nos. 516,561; 823,076; 1,586,499; 3,610,248; 3,669,117; 4,192,307; 4,447,164; 4,856,663; and 4,915,242.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,192,307; 3,610,248; 4,447,164; 4,915,242; 3,669,117; and 823,076 show various type pacifiers that are effective for permitting an infant to exercise the instinctive sucking action but do not provide for a teething action.
U.S. Pat. No. 516,561 shows a type of teether but does not include any means to help the infant keep the teether in his/her mouth for an extended length of time.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,856,663 shows a type of pacifier specifically designed for a child with a cleft palate. U.S. Pat. No. 1,586,499 is a tooth exerciser showing a device generally of the configuration employed in teethers but meant as a tooth exerciser and not meant for use as a teether.
These prior art references demonstrate the state of the art which does not disclose, to the knowledge of Applicant, a device for teething including a means of helping the infant maintain the teether within his/hers mouth.